Bhutan - Foreign investment

Foreign investment comes primarily from India, and is carried out within
the context of Bhutan's special relationship with India.
Bhutan's first two Five Year Plans in the 1960s were 100%
financed by India. Since then, Bhutan has relied on an increasingly
diverse set of countries—Australia, Austria, Finland, Denmark,
Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, New
Zealand, Italy, New Zealand, Sweden, South Korea, South Korea, United
Kingdom and United States—and multilateral
institutions—the UN, the World Bank and the Asian Development
Bank (ADB)—to provide capital on a concessional basis, though
India remains the dominant source. On private foreign investment, the
government's stance is that foreign direct investment (FDI) it is
becoming increasingly necessary to meet the country's employment
and self-sufficiency goals. FDI is now permitted in certain sectors,
including tourism where, in 2002, negotiations were being pursued for
joint ventures with international hotel and resort chains. Concerns to
preserve Bhutan's cultural heritage, its natural environment, and
to prevent the emergence of large income inequalities can be expected to
take precedence over any opening to foreign investment.